Hatching with 2 broodies

[Sonya9]

Reason I think it had pipped rather than just got cracked somehow is because there was a straightish line around the middle of the egg and that's what I read happens when it pips.

"Pipping" refers to a single small poke through the shell (generally on the large end) so the chick can get outside air, then a while later the chick starts to unzip and hatch (a while can be 6 hours or 24+, they need to learn to use their lungs fully and practice breathing before they leave the shell, also ALL blood is absorbed from the shell membrain before they emerge).

It doesn't look like a crack, but a bit jagged along the edges resulting from many little pecks to open the shell.

 

[jools2014]

I think I meant unzipping that I had read about, though it doesn't sound like that now from your description. Wouldn't it be almost impossible for a chick to be unzipping already on day 16/17 anyway? I mean what's the earliest a chick can hatch? I'm pretty sure the chick was still alive, and I have read about there being blood if the chick missed the air sac or something. Those people who had blood had mostly successful hatches but then it was probably later on not as soon as day 17.

I have my 2 broodies sitting on 4 eggs now altogether, hoping this works, if it doesn't I'm just giving up with it I think as I'm too sensitive to have chicks dying and thinking there was something I could have done differently!

Just in case it happens again, what do you suggest I do if there is a crack and blood coming out of an egg that early but I'm pretty sure the chick is still alive? Does it have any chance of still hatching later on?

 

[16 paws]

I think I meant unzipping that I had read about, though it doesn't sound like that now from your description. Wouldn't it be almost impossible for a chick to be unzipping already on day 16/17 anyway? I mean what's the earliest a chick can hatch? I'm pretty sure the chick was still alive, and I have read about there being blood if the chick missed the air sac or something. Those people who had blood had mostly successful hatches but then it was probably later on not as soon as day 17.

I have my 2 broodies sitting on 4 eggs now altogether, hoping this works, if it doesn't I'm just giving up with it I think as I'm too sensitive to have chicks dying and thinking there was something I could have done differently!

Just in case it happens again, what do you suggest I do if there is a crack and blood coming out of an egg that early but I'm pretty sure the chick is still alive? Does it have any chance of still hatching later on?

I really dont think there is too much you can do.
I have had several chicks make it to hatch day and die halfway out of the shell. In fact it happened to me today. It is very hard to deal with but dont give up. There are also hatches that have no problems. Do not blame yourself.
Hugs
Marie

 

[Farmer Viola]

I think I meant unzipping that I had read about, though it doesn't sound like that now from your description. Wouldn't it be almost impossible for a chick to be unzipping already on day 16/17 anyway? I mean what's the earliest a chick can hatch? I'm pretty sure the chick was still alive, and I have read about there being blood if the chick missed the air sac or something. Those people who had blood had mostly successful hatches but then it was probably later on not as soon as day 17.

I have my 2 broodies sitting on 4 eggs now altogether, hoping this works, if it doesn't I'm just giving up with it I think as I'm too sensitive to have chicks dying and thinking there was something I could have done differently!

Just in case it happens again, what do you suggest I do if there is a crack and blood coming out of an egg that early but I'm pretty sure the chick is still alive? Does it have any chance of still hatching later on?

I have seen this happen usually when the chick pips the wrong end of the egg, but this was for on-time eggs. One chick either lost too much blood or drowned... the other chick lived! I opened the incubator (not a broody situation) and rolled the egg so that the bloody pip was facing the sky and could not pool at the bottom and 'drown' her.

I would guess that blood loss at day 17 would result in mortality... that sounds to me like accidental cracking, maybe from the hen or something, not a pip created by a chick who is ready to hatch.. just my 2c... if it were on time I believe it could survive though.

 

[ItalyChickie]

I think I meant unzipping that I had read about, though it doesn't sound like that now from your description. Wouldn't it be almost impossible for a chick to be unzipping already on day 16/17 anyway? I mean what's the earliest a chick can hatch? I'm pretty sure the chick was still alive, and I have read about there being blood if the chick missed the air sac or something. Those people who had blood had mostly successful hatches but then it was probably later on not as soon as day 17.

I have my 2 broodies sitting on 4 eggs now altogether, hoping this works, if it doesn't I'm just giving up with it I think as I'm too sensitive to have chicks dying and thinking there was something I could have done differently!

Just in case it happens again, what do you suggest I do if there is a crack and blood coming out of an egg that early but I'm pretty sure the chick is still alive? Does it have any chance of still hatching later on?

I agree with what the others said... at day 17, it's very unlikely to be a pip, and while there are miraculous survival stories of cracked eggs, much more often they don't make it... and if they do, it's more likely in a controlled situation (bator rather than broodies)... sorry to be such a downer! Accepting that sometimes losses will happen is definitely part of the hatching process.

I still don't know what your setup is, but if your broodies are where others can get in, that might be a possible cause for eggs cracking. Or the two broodies might be stealing eggs from each other (this happened to me, with disastrous results) - not all broodies are suited to co-parenting. Doing something differently in this case could be as simple as giving each of them a separate, protected area - much safer for eggs and newly hatched chicks. Just a thought.

 

[jools2014]

Quote: Thanks Marie, sorry you have lost one today hugs. It's horrible. Think I found it worse as I only had 3 eggs to begin with, so now after hatch day I have no chicks at all! I didn't really take into account breakages and losing eggs, all I could think was "I don't want 5 roosters!" So that's why I only started off with 3.

Quote: Cracking was my first thought, especially since the other egg had just disappeared too. So awful to make it that far and get cracked and kill the chick when it's almost ready to hatch and fully formed!

Quote:
No you're not a downer, it helps a lot to put things in perspective and know that there probably wasn't anything I could've done to save it.

I have 2 broodies in the same box. It's not ideal, I only have one other hen laying (broodies are sitting on all her eggs now) and she does most of the time lay in that box too so sometimes there are 3 in there! (it's a big box) Even though there are two other places to lay. I would move them but the last time one of them went broody I moved her to another place with a box with the eggs in and it broke her out of being broody. They just only want to sit in that box, that's why I haven't moved them this time. Once/if the chicks came I would move them. I have seen the broodies "fight" over the eggs once, but nothing serious, they were still gentle with them.

 

[16 paws]

Have you thought of getting some newborns and put them under at night? I had to do this many times because I never kept roosters. It has always worked out great for me and the broodys. They took to them right off the bat and everything went great. Then you will get the pleasure of watching them raise the babies.
Marie

 

[jools2014]

Have you thought of getting some newborns and put them under at night? I had to do this many times because I never kept roosters. It has always worked out great for me and the broodys. They took to them right off the bat and everything went great. Then you will get the pleasure of watching them raise the babies.
Marie

Yes Marie, that was my plan all along but it just never worked out. Either I couldn't find a place that sells them in my area (didn't want to travel miles with baby chicks in the car) or they'd sold out of the chicks really fast. I have found a place now, but I think most of the chicks they sell are bantams which I don't really want. Last time I just decided to let the broodies sit since we do have a rooster. This time I thought about getting some chicks but by the time I found any round my area and anyone got back to me about what chicks they had my broodies had already been sitting on new fertile eggs for a few days. I gave them some more fertile eggs as soon as I realised the other one wasn't going to hatch because I thought if I still can't find any baby chicks anywhere I'll have wasted another few days and they've already been sitting a long time. It's definitely something I'd like to do, maybe next year.

 

[Sonya9]

Yes Marie, that was my plan all along but it just never worked out. Either I couldn't find a place that sells them in my area (didn't want to travel miles with baby chicks in the car) or they'd sold out of the chicks really fast. I have found a place now, but I think most of the chicks they sell are bantams which I don't really want. Last time I just decided to let the broodies sit since we do have a rooster. This time I thought about getting some chicks but by the time I found any round my area and anyone got back to me about what chicks they had my broodies had already been sitting on new fertile eggs for a few days. I gave them some more fertile eggs as soon as I realised the other one wasn't going to hatch because I thought if I still can't find any baby chicks anywhere I'll have wasted another few days and they've already been sitting a long time. It's definitely something I'd like to do, maybe next year.

Another option, if they go broody give them some unfertile eggs to sit on and order some hatching eggs of the breeds you want, then incubate them in a brooder. When the chicks hatch out you have the breeds you desire and you just slip the newly hatched chicks under the broodies at night. With my broodies I gave some fertile eggs (bought on ebay) to one broody and the other one I wasn't sure about (she would leave the nest more frequently), so I incubated some and kept her on duds, when the chicks hatched she got them.

The brinsea incubators aren't cheap (about $140 for the mini that hatches 7 eggs) but they are awesome! They turn the eggs for you. electrically measure the temps, etc...and make it extremely easy to incubate. They are are also a good thing to have on hand even with broodies sitting on eggs "just in case" they lose interest, or even to try and save a cracked egg.

 

[16 paws]

I need some help from experienced hatchers.
This egg is from my broody who hatched 2 eggs yesterday. This one has looked like this since last night. The chick is alive and chirping but I lost one yesterday that looked similar to this. It was dead and halfway out of the shell. Looked like the mama was trying to help the other one to get out because she was pecking and removing the shell. This does not look right to me.
Any advice?
Marie